To Hell and Back
by Kireina Koe
Summary: They all knew it was inevitable. Cassandra was going to die one day. But, that doesn't mean that they all let their hopes die. Jake always hoped that there would be a magical cure. That maybe destiny would bring them to an artifact that would save her. Time's running out. It's time for Jake to take destiny into his own hands.
1. Chapter 1

"Damn! We are good.." Ezekiel grinned as he walked through the backdoor, "Who feels like take out? Hell! I'll buy!"

Following behind him was Eve Baird, wearing her signature disapproving smile, "Define good? Is getting your ass handed to you by a bunch of teenagers good?"

"Hey. They were at least six foot four. And huge. And I don't do punchy." He shrugged it off.

"Are you kidding? They were some of the scrawniest kids I've ever met." Jake joined in.

Cassandra followed behind quietly. Over the past year, she had grown accustomed to the group's bickering, and she loved it. She shared a quick look with Jenkins, who also appeared to be amused.

"Maybe, but they were devil worshipers. They had some weird voodoo powers." Ezekiel tried to defend himself.

"They weren't devil worshipers." Jenkins intervened, "The were..."

But his voice trailed off. In fact... everything did. Voices, smells, colors. It all faded away. Except for one.

"You alright, Cass?"

Before she could respond, she blacked out.

As she started to collapse, Jake quickly jogged over to catch her before she could hit the floor, gently kneeling on the floor with her.

"Cass? Cassie?" He gently tapped her cheek, only to find that he would get no response.

"Jenkins?" Eve called out as she joined them on the floor.

"On it!" Ezekiel and Jenkins got to work on quickly reactivating the back door.

"Come on, Cassie..." Jake muttered as he tried to bring her back to consciousness.

* * *

She awoke several hours later. Her head was throbbing, and the strong scent of bleach invaded her nose.

"Hello? You there?" A voice called to her.

"F-Flynn?" She groaned as she tried to keep her eyelids open. "How did you get here?"

She looked around. Where is here?

"I came as soon as I heard. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. You didn't have to come all the way back." She tried to force herself into a sitting position, but that didn't last long as she fell back onto the bed, "W-where are we?"

"The hospital." Ezekiel nodded.

"Which one?" the redhead blinked a few times, waiting for her vision to become clear.

"Jenkins said it was in Minnesota." Eve's voice was heard.

"Mayo Clinic?" Ezekiel added in.

Slowly, she could see the forms of all her friends. And soon after that, their faces and details came to view. She smiled some as she looked at all her friends.

All except one.

"Where's Jake?"

Eve looked to Ezekiel before carefully replying, "He's back with Jenkins. He said something about not being able to stand hospitals."

Cassandra's face fell for a second before quickly picking herself back up. She didn't want her other friends to think that they were not enough.

"That's okay. I hate them too." She tried to joke.

A few minutes passed, mostly everyone question Flynn on his findings. He assured them that he hadn't found the library yet, but he could feel that he was getting closer to it. Cassandra, of course, apologized and insisted that he didn't have to come and see her. She was fine.

However, when the doctor walked into the room, the look on his face corrected her.

She was not fine.

* * *

Back at the Library, or well the branch facility, or Annex. Whatever you want to call it. Jake sat with his head in his hands.

Useless. All these damn books were useless.

He took the book from his lap and threw it, not caring which direction it flew. He picked up the next book from the mountain beside him.

How long had he been here? An hour? Two days? He couldn't tell.

"Quite a mess." Flynn's voice traveled as he walked up the steps.

"How long?" Jake could barely growl out. His voice was hoarse and scratchy. He figured it was probably two days.

"She asked where you were." The older man avoided his question.

"How long, Flynn?" He repeated himself.

With a heavy sigh, finally answered, "Six weeks. Two months tops."

He expected more of a reaction. He expected Jake to throw more books or punch a wall. But he didn't. He sat there, processing the information., and to be honest. Flynn wasn't sure which thought scared him more. The silence dragged on between them.

"I'm going to find something." Jake reached for another book.

"You think I haven't tried?" Flynn asked him, "Excalibur was the only sure way for her to get better."

"We know what happened there." the younger man almost spat out, his emotions getting the better of him.

"I was supposed to die. I was ready to. She saved me instead. I have to live with that guilt. Everyday."

Now Jake stood up, looking the Librarian in the eyes.

"Must be easier to deal with when you aren't here. When you don't have to look at her everyday. You don't have to see her smile and wonder if that's the last time you'll ever see it."

More silence. Neither one dared to break the silence. Instead they let each other calm down.

"I'm sorry." Jake looked down before turning to pick up another book, leaving through the lines or Latin.

"Maybe I deserve that," Flynn began, "But you can't get your hopes up like this. That's not how it works."

"It's better than nothing." he flipped a page angrily.

"She's scared. Being there with her isn't nothing." Flynn tried to reason with him, "She needs you there."

"If I go there... and see her like that..." he trailed off as he looked up again. All the anger faded away, just a tired look on his face, "I'll give up."

"Give up what?" Flynn tilted his head.

"Looking. There will be a cure out there. Magic exists. There has to be a way." he shut the book in frustration. Nothing. Again.

Flynn sighed, "Once I heard of this artifact. I even tried to follow it, but I got interrupted every time." He took off deeper into the stacks. Jake quickly jogged after him. Until the Librarian took a sharp right. He skimmed the shelves until he picked an old book, with red leather binding.

"The Hidden City of Shambhala?" Jake translated the text of the cover.

"Yes." Flynn flipped the pages until he found what he wanted, "The Cintamani Stone." He handed the book to Jake, who read the pages with astounding speed.

"Do we know if this even exists?"

"No." Flynn answered truthfully.

"That's all I need." He took the book with him and turned to leave, calling over his shoulder, "I'm going to find it."

* * *

Author's Note: Thanks for reading! This is my first fan-fic in a while. Please tell me what you think. All constructive criticisms are welcome!


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: I had forgotten how addicting writing fanfiction could be. Just, wow. Thank you guys so much for reading and reviewing and favoriting and following. And no, that was not a one-shot. Thanks again, now on with the story!

* * *

He stood outside the door. He knew he had to do this before he started his journey. In case he didn't make it back in time.

No. He wouldn't think like that. He was going to find the stone and save her.

His hand rested on the doorknob. It was late, so he quietly opened the door. He looked into the dark room. Eve was asleep in a chair. Ezekiel was probably off getting food somewhere. His eyes scanning it until they reached the center of the room.

She was asleep. He took in her frail looking form. She looked sick.

Now, Jake was many things, but he was not a fool.

Cassandra had been getting worse. Deteriorating. It was a slow process, but it had been happening. He payed attention.

Her appetite shrank. The girl that made him hold onto his curly fries, (for fear that she would eat them when he wasn't looking), now couldn't finish her favorite milkshake without feeling sick to her stomach.

Her headaches were getting worse. She thought no one noticed when she'd grip her head while reading, the words getting harder to decipher. Blurry. She had stopped reading outside of missions about a month back.

She lost weight. When she collapsed onto him, he had noticed how much. She was never big to start with, but now...

He shook his head, not wanting to continue that thought.

Cassandra had been dying for a long time.

He walked closer to her. The steady beeping of the machines by her bed and her light snoring served as the only sounds in the room.

He was wrong. Seeing her like this, giving up was the last thing on his mind. Oh no. He was more determined than ever. He would save her.

"Cassie?" He whispered as he carefully took his small hand in his own, almost afraid that it would break, "I have to leave, but I promise, I'll be back. Alright?"

He knew he wasn't going to get a response, but some part of him still waited for one.

"Flynn told me about an artifact. It will fulfill the wish of anyone who finds it... I'm going to find it, and wish for you to get better.

"So, don't you go and try dying on me, alright?" He tried to joke, but felt no humor, "I'll be back."

He ended his little speech by placing a soft kiss on her forehead. A gesture he hadn't thought twice about, unaware of the pair of eyes watching him from the corner.

* * *

Jake paced across the floor of the Annex. His messenger bag was on the table, filled with maps and old books about Buddhism and Hinduism.

"Remind me again, why are you flying to Tibet?" Ezekiel asked, lazily sprawled out in a nearby chair.

"The flying part? Or the Tibet part?" he didn't stop his pacing.

"Both, if you don't mind." he grinned, almost as if he found Jake's restlessness to be funny.

"Flynn wanted me to check out an artifact that could be dangerous." Jake lied again, "And the back door needs to be used to get to Cassandra's room and Jenkins can't make it go to the same door twice..." he trailed off, because he knew his point was made.

They had agreed to not tell the others, because Flynn insisted on not getting their hopes up as well. Jake just nodded his head, because he didn't want to hear the same lecture again.

"Dangerous, you say?" the younger man sprung out of his chair, "I could come too. Two's better than one, am I right?"

"No." Jake nearly growled. The last thing he needed was Ezekiel Jones running around and causing problems.

"Why not?"

"Because-" the other one started.

"Because I already booked the flight and you're needed here for a local job." Jenkins entered the room. He handed Jake his boarding pass, "Gate 14b, plane leaves at 12:30."

Jake took the papers and turned to leave, but he was stopped by Ezekiel.

"Go save her, mate." he smirked slightly before stepping out of the way.

Jake only stared at him, confused.

"Rule one when it comes to being sneaky, always case the joint before stepping in. You never know who might be in the shadows."

With that, Ezekiel turned back to speak with Jenkins, letting a semi-flustered Jake leave the building.

* * *

A/N: Sorry this one is short, I could have continued with it, but I felt that this was the best place to end this chapter. I promise I will make up for it. More coming soon.


	3. FALSE ALARM: AUTHOR'S NOTE!

An Author's Note:

Hi guys! Wow this fic has gotten a lot more attention than I thought it would...

That's why I'm scared to say this. I have midterms this coming week, so I will not be able to update this week or next week. I PROMISE that when I finish my midterms I will give you guys two chapters right away.

Thank you for being understanding!


	4. Chapter 3

Author's Note: Hi! I'm back! Thank you guys for waiting and sticking with me for the past few weeks. Here you go, as promised!

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own The Librarians or any of their characters. I do not even ave my own library card.

* * *

_He shuddered as the cold air rolled past his skin. This is what they get for trying to appreciate the art!_

_They were given some time off since Flynn had gotten back (probably because he and Eve had some 'catching up' to do). Jake admitted that he always wanted to find a lost Pyramid. Cassandra was immediately ready to go on an adventure. Ezekiel, on the other hand, he was all but willing to go once he heard about the vast riches that was rumored to be inside. Not even done with their first day and said thief was nowhere to be found and their jeep had broken down. In her panic, Cassandra started listing off dangerous creatures that came out of the desert at night, and how the climate changes to cold temperatures at night._

_Just great. They were stuck, until morning that is._

_Cassandra cleared her throat for the fifth time in two minutes._

_"What's up, Cassie?" he looked up fro his pathetic attempt at making a fire._

_"Well..." she blushed lightly, so he knew this would be good, " Body heat is best preserved when shared..." she continued to rambled, making Jake roll his eyes._

_"Come 'ere." he extended his arm to the side, and Cassandra quickly scooted closer into his side._

_"I'm sorry..." she murmured after some silence between them._

_"Why?"_

_"If I payed more attention, I could have figured out how to get back and-"_

_He interrupted her, "That's not your fault, Cass. Why should you have? I should have checked the engine before we left the city."_

_"But I..."_

_"But nothing." he sighed, "Cass, your ability... it makes you special. But that's not the only thing we keep you around for." he smile halfheartedly._

_She looked up at him, curious, so he took this as encouragement to continue._

_"I like you, Cassie. Not the brain grape." he gently tightened his grip around her, as if to strengthen his message._

_"But you don't trust me."_

_"No... I don't."_

_She looked down, this time in defeat._

_"But I want to, and if you knew anything about my past, you'd realize that is enough."_

_"Not big on forgiveness?"_

_"Let's just say, every time I forgave someone, they gave me a reason not to." he shrugged._

_Her eyes lit up suddenly, like when they did when she figured out how to solve a problem. It clicked._

_"I think I understand now..." She was always an outcast, so she never had to worry about friends and trust before, "It'll happen when it happens, but I will get your trust back, Jake Stone."_

_He couldn't help but chuckle, "I'm sure you will."_

_More silence passed. Until he could hear her gentle snoring. Which helped him drift off as well._

_Jake awoke a few hours later, to a blinding bright light and a sharp pain in his cheek._

_"Morning, mate!" Ezekiel gave Jake's cheek a final poke with his stick._

_"What the hell?!" he tried to sit up, but had a Cassandra on his chest._

_"Am I interrupting anything?" The thief waggled his eyebrows._

_"My sleep." A groggy Cassandra murmured, sitting up. Even Ezekiel knew to take a stop back. No one messed with a tired Cassandra._

_"Anyway, I brought along some friends." he jerked his thumb behind him._

_The bright light had been headlights of a Jeep._

_"Christ!" Jake shot up, "Why not say something sooner?"_

_"I thought about it, but I thought this would be more fun." the younger one smirked as he slowly brought the stick up to poke Jake's cheek again._

_"Don't." he almost growled._

_"Boop." Ezekiel poked his cheek defiantly._

_Jake grabbed the stick out of the thief's hands and snapped it before he could respond._

_"Can you two stop playing around? I'm starving." Cassandra stretched before hopping into the Jeep._

_The boys stopped glaring at each other and nodded, ready to get the hell out of the desert._

* * *

"Ezekiel, cut it out!" He groaned as he felt someone shake him away.

"No sir, you asked me to wake you up when we landed." The flight attendant smiled politely.

"Sorry ma'am." He blinked the sleep out of his eyes, "How much longer?"

"We are descending now." She smiled and walked down the aisle.

Jake sighed. Not a bad nap for a 23 hour flight.

When the plane landed in Lhasa, he knew where he needed to go.

**Jokhang Temple.**

He didn't pack much for luggage. Mostly books and scrolls about the city of Shambhala. Jake walked out of the airport and caught the attention of a taxi.

"Jokhang Temple, please." he told the driver in very poor Tibetan.

"That's over an hour away." The cab driver replied in English.

Jake looked surprised but didn't think about it much, "I know." he handed him a wad of Renminbi.

"Yes, sir." he pulled out onto the streets.

* * *

The temple was huge and beautiful. Given any other circumstances, he would have stood there in awe at the artwork. Alas, he had a job to do, and a strict deadline to finish it by. He walked in through the front doors.

He walked down the halls until he found the main prayer room. Three monks were lighting the candles.

"Hello?" Jake called to them.

"Welcome. How can we help you?" The one on the left asked.

"I came to ask you a few questions. Is that alright?" he suddenly felt uneasy. What if they thought he was stupid or crazy?

"What is it?" the on on the right asked.

"It's about the city of Shambhala..." Jake trailed off, seeing the expressions of the monks.

"What do you know of it?" The monk on the left asked carefully.

"I know it could have something I need. Please-" He was interrupted by the monk in the middle, the much older one.

"A heart filled with greed can never enter the Lost City." the monk looked upon Jake.

"I have not interest for the gold."

"Fame and prestige?"

"No I-"

"You will never reach Shambhala!" he stated strongly, leaving no room for argument.

"No, I have to."

"The City of Shambhala does not exist, fool."

They turned to leave the room, leaving Jake speechless.

* * *

Author's Note: Thank you all so much! My finals ended today and I think I did pretty well on them. Now I have no school until Wednesday! So, your bonus chapter for waiting so patiently will coming to you soon.

PS: Look up the Jokhang Temple. It is real and I am putting more research into this story than I have my AP US History class all year.


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